The Stash List

All Killer, No Filler

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No extended introduction this week, as my recent efforts have been directed toward the Top 50 Fantasy Prospects List, which came out yesterday. If you haven’t checked it out yet, right after you finish reading this column is as good a time as any. Instead, we’ll just get straight to what you came here to see. After all, I am a man of the people.

With Jeremy Bonderman being designated for assignment on Monday, it’s all over but the shouting for the Eraser. With unconfirmed (at least as I’m typing this) reports that he’ll be called up to start Thursday’s game, the most recent staple at the top of the Stash List is about to move on. At this point, Ramirez should be owned in just about every league out there.

This rehab assignment appears to be going a lot better than the last one. In nine games thus far, Eaton is hitting .393/.538/.571 and has gotten through two games in the outfield. If he gets through the rest of the week unscathed, he should be back after the All-Star break to give the Diamondbacks a big boost at the top of their lineup.

It’s essentially turned from the Castellanos Watch to the Dirks Watch, as this situation has now become more dependent on the incumbent’s ability to hold off the youngster. And since June 1, Dirks is hitting .252 with one homer, one steal, and a .320 slugging percentage. That’s just not going to cut it for much longer.

On Tuesday, Beachy will restart his minor-league assignment by returning to Triple-A for at least a handful of outings. I still believe that the Braves will make room for Beachy in the major-league rotation, despite not having an opening for him—whether that opening is created by a demotion or a trade. But he has to hold up his end of the bargain first.

It’s so tempting to keep looking for signs of Hamilton turning his season around, just because the speed would be such a game-changer for fantasy purposes. Unfortunately, he’s just not giving us those signs. Hamilton has drawn exactly one walk in the last calendar month, against 20 strikeouts. Yet, it’s still just so tempting.

Four games into his rehab assignment, and A-Rod is already disappointing everyone and their mothers, uncles, and grandparents. I swear, if I see another one of these “A-Rod goes hitless in another minor-league game” headlines, I’m going to lose my mind. The man hasn’t played all year; give him a break if he doesn’t come out with all cylinders firing.

With the way Martinez has been throwing at Triple-A, I’d be at least a little surprised if they don’t give him a shot in the rotation before July is up. He’s stretched out and ahead of Wacha on the depth chart. Plus, Joe Kelly isn’t going to help the Cardinals much in their fight to get into the playoffs.

The Scott Feldman acquisition puts a damper on the Gausman excitement in Baltimore, and increases the chances of him staying in the bullpen for the remainder of the season. Though, to be fair, he is still Scott Feldman and could open that door back up at any moment.

Since his demotion on June 25, Middlebrooks is hitting .303 with six homers in just 17 games. He’s got a huge hole to dig out of at the major-league level, but he should get another opportunity in relatively short order (assuming the alien currently residing inside Jose Iglesias’ body finds something better to do).

With the Rockies falling further and further out of contention, the chances of Rafael Betancourt being dealt continu to increase. And Brothers will be more than happy to step into his role if that happens, as his 0.99 ERA on the season would dictate.

Springer has really taken to Triple-A thus far, with a .378 average, four homers, four steals, and even a strikeout rate under 30 percent. The only reason he’s not higher on this list is that I just don’t see the rush for the Astros to promote him in the next couple of months. After all, Springer isn’t even on the 40-man roster.

If we’re strictly talking about potential upside, Morrow has some of the highest on this list. Unfortunately for him, he’s unlikely to be back before August, and it’s been a season to forget even when he’s been healthy. Still, Morrow is exactly the type of arm who could end up being a huge part of head-to-head championships down the stretch.

The whispers of Parker getting the first crack at the closer’s job in Chicago are growing louder, and the odds of the Cubs keeping Kevin Gregg through the deadline are minimal. My confidence in him wouldn’t be strong as a potential owner, but a man with a job is a man with a job.

Rosenthal’s rise has more to do with his potential than any struggles with Edward Mujica. Though on the other hand, Mujica has given up more earned runs and homers in the last month than in his first two-and-a-half. If Rosenthal were to get this job at some point down the stretch, he’d instantly become a top-10 closer.

With Erasmo Ramirez on his way up and Danny Hultzen again sidelined with shoulder soreness, Walker suddenly becomes the potential next guy in line for a spot in the Mariners rotation. The prospect of seeing this high-upside talent in the majors soon is enticing, but the odds are still small.

I'm with bline24. I fail to see why Erasmo is generating such excitement. He apparently wasn't eligible for your best prospects list this year, but in 2012 BP listed him as Seattle's 15th-best prospect. He had an OK debut last season but he hasn't had any kind of explosive breakout. I see him best as a play by those owners who have rights to Tijuan Walker; if he thrives at the MLB level, fine, if not, you'll probably get Walker down the stretch.

As an owner of Felix Hernandez, if you are looking for W's from a Seattle pitcher look elsewhere...For every three great game pitched (7 IP 2 ER or less) you might get 1 win...Thank God for Raul Ibanez...He's worth two broken down Travis Hafners!...

Sveum has publicly talked about Parker getting a shot. Strop also has 16 walks in 26 innings and after suffering through Marmol, I would think they might prefer to go with the guy who has better control.